Continuing brush fires pose threat to Central Florida wildlife, experts say

Dry conditions have been sparking wildfires across Central Florida, and in addition to threatening homes, the fires can pose a threat to wildlife.

Carol Hardee, of the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Central Florida, recently rescued a fawn from a living room in Chuluota.

After becoming separated from its family in the forest, the fawn ran through a neighborhood and into the home of a family who had left their door open.

A massive fire raged across the street.

“We figured she must have been so frightened by the fires, she was just panicked,” said Hardee.

But Hardee said the fawn, which she named Sparkle, is one of the lucky ones.

She said the wildfires could kill thousands of animals or force them into areas that aren’t safe.

Some will cross busy roads, while others might hunker down.

“They can run into a fence and get caught in a fence and die that way,” said Hardee. “It’s just horrible.”

She said the ones that make it out still face starvation because their home is burned down, but eventually, the charred woods will go back to green.

“The wildlife can recover from devastation like that. They will rend to reproduce rapidly afterwards,” said Hardee.

She said she will continue to do her part to make wildlife thrive.

Once Sparkle gets a little bigger and a little stronger, she will be released back into the wild in a place where hunting is prohibited.

Cox Media Group